Once it is determined that renal replacement therapy will eventually be required, the patient should be counselled to consider the advantages and disadvantages of hemodialysis (in-center or at home), peritoneal dialysis (continuous or intermittent modalities), and renal transplantation (living or deceased donor) [ 35]. The 2006 K/DOQI guidelines recommend that patients with a GFR less than 30 mL/min per 1.73 m2 should be educated concerning these issues [ 29].
Kidney transplantation is the treatment of choice for end-stage renal disease. A successful kidney transplant improves the quality of life and reduces the mortality risk for most patients, when compared with maintenance dialysis. To facilitate early transplantation, a 2008 NKF/KDOQI conference suggested early education and referral to a transplantation center plus the identification of potential living donors [ 36].
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Referral to a transplant program should occur once renal replacement therapy is thought to be required within the next year [ 37].
Living donor transplants, if available, have the additional advantage of being performed with minimal delay, thereby permitting pre-emptive transplantation (transplantation prior to initiating dialysis). Such patients appear to